The flames of friendship
by mewsugarpudd
Summary: After joining Crime sorciere, the former Seis have a quiet night around the fire to get used to their new situation, and to perhaps become closer then they used to be before. And will Cobra and Midnight discover a new facet to their relationship that will change their whole dynamic. Birthday fic for Kisshufan4ever.


So my sister's (Kisshufan4ever) birthday is coming up, and she is obsessed with the Oracion Seis so I'm writing this fic for her :) It will have gratuitous amounts of Midco as well as bonding time for the former Oracion Seis.

Disclaimer : If I owned Fairy Tail, Gray would be the main character.

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Midnight sighed as he surveyed the members of his new guild, Crime sorciere. He was unsure how to feel about working with Jellal, the man who had caused his suffering within the Tower of Heaven.

Obviously the blue haired man had realised that the remaining members of the Seis were incredibly uncomfortable in his presence right now as he had taken his guildma... their new guildmate with him to gather more fire wood.

The ex-Seis probably could have helped out, but Jellal had insisted that they were okay with doing the chores themselves for the moment. They also had a small meal set up which they were currently eating.

The ex-Seis had been left behind to have a private talk about their situation.

And they definitely had a lot to think about.

The mood was very subdued, and Midnight noticed that Cobra looked particularly strained, his gift obviously picking up on the others more negative thoughts.

Racer still looked mildly annoyed at their new situation, eating turned away from the rest of the group like a petulant child who was ineffectively protesting a parents decision, despite the fact that Midnight had made it clear that they could all make their own choice about whether or not to join Crime sorciere.

even though Midnight did not portray all of his emotions, he knew that the grief he had felt when informed that Racer had tried to take his own life had been visible in his eyes. The Seis may not have been like those stupidly noble light guilds, but they had still cared about each other, and Midnight had made a pact with Cobra to keep an eye on Racer from now on.

The job was made a lot more difficult when Racer chose to act like a bratty child though.

He heard Cobra chuckle, and their eyes briefly locked as Midnight realised that Cobra was laughing at his description of Cobra's current attitude.

He inclined his head slightly in acknowledgment, and then Midnight let his eyes drift to Angel.

Although she had vehemently expressed her dislike of the cloaks, she was currently huddled into hers, eyes gazing at the sky as she ate her share of the food.

Midnight wondered if the stars reminded her of the celestial spirits that she had lost. Even though she hadn't treated them well all of the time, Midnight knew that she regretted losing them and still felt guilty over how she had treated them.

He was still shocked at how much Angel had grew after the fight with that Fairy Tail celestial mage. She wasn't exactly perfect, and she could still act like a spoiled kid on occasion, but she had definitely grew as a person and no one could ignore that fact.

Midnight was well aware that Cobra was now fully tuned into his thoughts, but it was such a familiar experience that Midnight could hardly protest it.

His eyes locked onto Hote... Richard's sombre figure.

The blockish mage was staring at a potato in his hands that he had split absentmindedly. A shimmer of longing and nostalgia resided in his eyes, and Midnight was saddened by it.

Shame pooled in his stomach as he remembered the look on his friend's face when he defeated him. To please the one whom he called father, Brain, Midnight had turned against one of his closest friends/

Guilt still rippled through him on occasion when he remembered how he had been use by Brain, along with near crippling anger. As these emotions bubbled up within him, Midnight became aware of Cobra's concerned expression.

Forcefully, he shoved those emotions down and turned back to analysing Richard.

The mages posture had slumped slightly as he gazed at the two potato halves held within his hands, clearly lost in memories.

He suddenly looked up, surprising Midnight when their eyes made contact. The other mage clearly caught on to Midnight's confusion as he smiled sadly.

"When I was younger, before the Tower, I lived with my younger brother Wally." Midnight nodded, bemused. He had already known that much, but Richard was clearly going to elaborate further.

"We owned a small farm, yet we couldn't get our crops to grow. and then one day, a single potato grew and we took it home. I tried to feign a stomach ache so that my brother could eat the whole thing, but he broke it in half and claimed that as he also had a stomach ache, I'd have to help him finish it. It is one of my fondest memories of my brother. My brother was the reason why I was so obsessed with money, I wished to track him down and reunite with him." The Seis were all stunned by this story, though Midnight noticed that Richard did finish his food with a new twinkle in his eye.

And then it was as if an invisible wall had been broken down between them. They were no longer bound by Brain, now they knew that they were sticking together out of friendship.

Angel was the next to confess, her voice soft and her eyes down turned.

"I had a younger sister, Yukino. I used to help her out through everything, like whenever my parents were mad at her. She always felt useless and my parents were always scolding her." Midnight was shocked to see twin trails of tears sliding down Angel's face.

"One day... one day our village was attacked by followers of Zeref. They murdered all of my family but they took me to be a slave. I wished to become an Angel as that incident showed me how impure humanity really is." Midnight could tell that Richard was greatly sympathising with Angel, a missing sibling was a shared trait between them even if Richard's brother was still alive whereas Yukino wasn't.

Angel had abandoned her pride in favour of mourning her family, and Midnight watched as Cobra wrapped a comforting arm around her.

Midnight fought down an irrational surge of jealousy, after all, Angel needed the comfort at the moment. Plus why would Midnight be jealous anyway.

When he looked up, he noticed Cobra raising an eyebrow at him, and Midnight flushed slightly, and turned towards Racer who was moodily gazing into the flames.

Midnight didn't really expect Racer to come forth with any information about his past, so when Racer did open his mouth, Midnight leaned in a little more. The rest of them also shifted forwards, though it seemed to be a subconscious decision for them.

"I don't remember any of my life before the Tower, except for the fact that I always love running. Speed has always been important to me. I always wanted to run away from the Tower, I wanted to be fast enough to get away." Racer shrugged, and his eyes turned dark.

"I won't forgive those stupid strippers for making fun of my speed."

"Strippers?" Angel gave Racer a bemused look as he clenched a fist in agitation.

"The ice mages who were part of the alliance to take us down. They teamed up to take me down." Midnight hoped that this vendetta wouldn't force Racer to do anything drastic like almost blowing

himself up again. But then Racer's expression changed.

"I'll challenge the dark haired fairy to another motorbike race, and I'll definitely win!" Racer's determination was expressed through a particularly vicious bite of his food, and Midnight internally grinned with relied that this seemed more like a friendly rivalry then a bitter grudge.

Now only two members had yet to spill their stories, and Midnight realised with a sudden bout of nervousness that he would have to confess some of his more personal thoughts soon.

Cobra was watching him, and obviously he overheard the mental war that Midnight was waging as he chose to speak first.

And maybe it was fitting for Midnight to go last, he was the leader after Brain and now, under Jellal, Midnight still had more say in what the Seis did. They were free to quit the guild or to ignore whatever he asked of them, but he was still willing to help guide them. The man who had pretended to be his father had messed that up and it fell to Midnight to lead them well in his stead as they had all stayed together.

"I don't remember my life before the Tower either, but that never really bothered me as I had Cubellious. Cobra's face dropped at the mention of his missing snake, and a wave of sympathy washed over Midnight. His friend had adored that snake and he would probably never get over the loss.

"I wanted to communicate with Cubellious desperately, but even with my enhanced hearing I was never capable of that feat. I also doubted first generation of dragon slayers because I didn't believe in dragons. Natsu changed that. He's definitely mental, but when Brain betrayed me, he actually got annoyed on my behalf. Those Fairies really messed up our way of thinking." All of the former Seis nodded at this.

And then they all turned to Midnight. He shifted uncomfortably.

"Like Cobra and Racer, I remember nothing of my life before the Tower. And in the Tower, all I wanted to do was sleep in peace." Angel smiled softly at him, clearly remembering the days in which they had shared a cell. She would gaze longingly at the sky whilst Midnight would clutch his ears in a futile attempt to block out all noise.

"And then Brain rescued us, and I started seeing him as a father figure. I wanted to be the strongest so that he would never have a reason to abandon me. I never questioned his reason for taking us in, I was so grateful and disillusioned by him. I probably would have never discovered his deceit if it wasn't Cobra." At this, Cobra released Angel and moved around the fire to hug Midnight instead. He knew that out of all of the Seis, Midnight had been hit the hardest by Brain's treachery.

"I will never forgive him." The statement felt a little stupid to him, Brain was deceased now, but the rest of the Seis all nodded.

"I can't believe that he used us all like that." Racer growled, and Angel placed a hand on his shoulder.

"There is one thing that we can thank him for." Richard's voice rang out clearly, and they all looked at him incredulously.

"He brought us all together. I mean, some of us knew each other before we formed the guild, but the rest of us might have never met if it wasn't for him." They all stared at each other in wonder for a moment, before one by one they all agreed with Richard's statement. A warm feeling enveloped them all, and Midnight wondered if this was how the Fairies felt constantly, so in tune with one another.

They remained in the comfortable, warm silence for a little longer before Angel declared that she needed to get her beauty sleep. They had already decided that they would have Cobra and Midnight take the first guard shift, followed by the other three and by then Jellal should have returned with Meredy for their own turn.

The others settled in to sleep, yet Cobra remained sitting right next to Midnight, his arm securely around his shoulders.

He seemed to be listening our for when the others actually fell into slumber as he waited for a while before speaking.

"So... what was with that jealousy?" His tone was gently teasing, and Midnight felt a blush begin to creep onto his face. If it was anyone else then he would have been able to deny what he had felt, but Cobra had clearly heard him think it. Cobra's arm tightened around him, effectively dragging him out of his thoughts.

"If you had wanted a cuddle then you could have just asked." Cobra's voice was playful, and Midnight felt his face turn even redder at Cobra's insinuation.

But then he began to actually reflect on Cobra's words. Why had he wanted the other mage to hug him? Sure, he'd always been closer to Cobra then the rest of the Seis, but that still didn't explain Midnight's strange feelings and reactions around him.

Cobra sighed besides him and removed his arm. Midnight was alarmed, had his thoughts somehow repelled his friend?

And then his face was squashed into the taller boy's chest as Cobra gripped him securely around the waist.

At a loss for what to do with his arms, Midnight lightly placed them around Cobra's shoulders. Cobra put his face in the crook of Midnight's neck and smiled, sending a quiver of pleasure through Midnight.

"You are a dope." Cobra declared, and although the tone was fond, Midnight still went to pull away indignantly.

That was then a pair of lips found their way onto his.

His eyes widened as he observed Cobra leaning down to kiss him. His mind was in complete and utter turmoil, but the majority of it was thinking about how much he was enjoying this.

Cobra evidently overheard this thought as he smiled into the kiss.

After a few seconds, Cobra moved back, and Midnight almost protested the other boy's retreat before he found himself pulled into a bone crunching hug.

And as he was held by Cobra, surrounded by their sleeping friends, Midnight pushed all thoughts of Brain's betrayal and Jellal's sudden need to bring them into his rogue guild out of his mind.

Because as long as this group stayed together, they were safe.

They had all lost their homes to be brought to the Tower, but they had found a new home with these people.

And maybe Midnight preferred this to having Brain as a father.

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So, yeah. Happy Birthday for Wednesday Kisshufan4ever and I hope that you enjoyed this :)


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